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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Saruga of Papua New Guinea

The Saruga of Papua New Guinea, numbering approximately 450 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an indigenous ethnic group of Papua New Guinea. They are an Indigenous people in the New Guinea people cluster of the Pacific Islander Peoples affinity bloc. Their primary language is Saruga and their primary religion is Protestantism.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash: Saruga

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Pacific Islander Peoples
Country: Papua New Guinea
People Cluster: New Guinea
Primary Language(s): Saruga (sra)
Primary Religion(s): Protestantism
Population: 450
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 5% or Greater but Less than 10% Evangelical
People Group ID: PG010418
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Pray for the Saruga of Papua New Guinea

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Protestantism
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

54%
%
Protestantism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Saruga
Language Family: Nuclear Trans New Guinea

65%
%
Saruga Speakers

Media Resources in Saruga:

Films:

No entries found for: Saruga(sra). Help build some!

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Bible Resources in Saruga:

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Saruga bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

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Explore Lostness and Next Steps

Unengaged and Unreached

Strategic Priority Index (SPI): Unengaged and Unreached (SPI: 2), which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations among which there are no known efforts focused on establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.
Lostness Priority Index (LPI): Marginally Reached People Group, (LPI: 4), 3% to 6% Evangelical.
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 5% or Greater but Less than 10% Evangelical (GSEC: 5), this people group is greater than or equal to 5% evangelical

Next steps for the Saruga:
Begin signifcant prayer and fasting for this group
Send cross-cultural teams to discover and research this people group
Begin gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Saruga are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Saruga:
Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Saruga are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Next steps for the Saruga:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Saruga of Papua New Guinea

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.
readRomans 1:18

Pray that God will have mercy and open the eyes of those who don't know Jesus, so that they can turn to the One who is able to save them from their sins.

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise).
readEphesians 6:1-2

Pray that God will bring young men and women to faith in Jesus and that the fruit of their faith will be a powerful testimony as they honor their parents.

Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.
readExodus 4:12

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, God will equip them with the words and wisdom to proclaim His message effectively.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
readHebrews 4:12

Pray that God will make His living and active Word available to everyone in this people group so that many will respond to the gospel. Ask Him to provide Jesus-followers to walk with new believers as they grow in Him.

Saruga Across Countries (ROP3 - 108733) reported in the following countries:

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Definitions page.

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